A group of security guards rushed out and flanked the Quint family as if it were an ambush. “Jay, you traitor! Are you out of your mind? The Hilfinger Corporation belongs to the Quint family now. How dare you tell the security to throw us out!?” The Quint family was stunned and enraged. Jay scoffed, “The Quint family is shit. Who told you that Hilfinger Corporation is going back to the Quint family?” “My grandson-in-law, Kaze Lee! He was at the rebuilding ceremony yesterday and he saw the fall of the Hilfinger family!” Master Quint argued. Jay cackled. “Your useless grandson-in-law? You believed him? If he said Lilyrose City belongs to him, would you ask the mayor to give you his place” Irritated, Jay urged the security guards to throw the Quint family out. “Don’t just stand there, throw them all out!” All of them were thrown out of the lobby. "Get the hell out of here! Hilfinger Corporation is now under the control of the Everia, Golding, and Chapman families. The Quin
"He’s just the Quints’ son-in-law, why did the Lee family go to such an extent to warn him? They must have overestimated him," Eliot said with a scornful grunt. He was displeased with the Lee family because they used to hold the same rank as the top three families. Now, the Everia, Golding, and Chapman families had to take orders from the Lee family. Eliot was an ambitious man and he too wanted to push the Everia family to new heights. Frank said, “I heard he has the support of the Perfect World Group. After Roger Hilfinger killed himself, his body was sent back to the Lee family in a coffin.“He even gave the Lee family three weeks to apologize to him in person. The family was having a birthday party for Karina Lee when the coffin crashed their party. Then, George Lee asked us to deal with this little retard.” The top three families accepted the terms offered by the Lees. All they had to do was deal with a retard of a son-in-law and they could get Hilfinger Corporation. W
“Ms. Lowry, I didn’t hit Ben. He took my toy and he fell when he ran away!” Brenda stood with her hands behind her back in the corner of the office, crying her lungs out as she tried to defend herself. The boy named Ben was sitting in front of her. There seemed to be some blood stain below his nose, and he was also crying. Slam! Ben’s father, Ken, slammed the table and shouted, “You wretched girl! How dare you lie! Ben is a good boy, he has a lot of toys. Why would he take yours? No wonder you lie at such a young age, your parents didn’t teach you right!” Ben’s mother, Elsa, said coldly, “Ms. Lowry, Brenda White is obviously a badly educated child. I’m afraid Ben might be influenced by being in the same class as her. I’d suggest she gets expelled!” Brenda cried when she heard the boy’s mother threatened to expel her. “Sobs, no I don’t want! Ms. Lowry, please don’t expel me! I am a good girl, I didn’t hit Ben!” Ms. Arina Lowry was a fresh grad recently recruited as a tea
Soon, a forty-one-year-old man with glasses came into the office. The man was the principal of Golden Sun Kindergarten, Jonas Jordan. “Ms. Lowry, what’s going on?” Ms. Lowry explained to him. “Principal Jordan, this girl here hit my son and accused him of taking her toy. She’s a vile child and I don’t want her to be in the same class as my son. You know what to do.” Ken grunted angrily. Kaze scoffed, “I said we’ll check the surveillance footage. What’s wrong with you? Can’t understand English?” Principal Jordan glanced at Kaze who refused to compromise and then at Ken who sounded righteous. Both of them seemed to have a background. It gave him an instant headache. He could only carry out the standard operating procedures. “Hold on, I’ve asked someone to get the surveillance footage.” Soon, a staff member entered. Principal Jordan had a look at the video that the worker recorded using his phone. The footage showed that Brenda was playing with other kids. Ben, o
Ken laughed when he heard Kaze. “Kid, bold words you have there. Be careful not to bite your own tongue when you talk.” Elsa laughed as well. “Golden Sun Kindergarten is my husband’s company brand, and he can’t expel a girl? Who do you think you are?” Kaze ignored the two of them. He pulled his phone out and called Snow, who was waiting outside the preschool. “Snow, have you heard of Tuling Education Group? Who is their boss?” “Mr. Chairman, you don’t know about the Tuling Education Group?” Snow was surprised. She then explained, “Jessica Summer is the CEO of Tuling Education Group. She founded the company with a partner.” “Jessica’s company?” Kaze was surprised. He did not care about what company Jessica owned or how big her business had gotten. Even if she was the richest woman in South River State, she would have to kneel before James’ grave. “Call Jessica and tell her to come here right away.” Kaze then hung up the phone. “Who is Jessica?” Elsa was baffled
Jessica shuddered in fear when she heard Kaze. She looked around and finally saw Ken. Her gaze turned frosty and bellowed, “Ken Mendez, how dare you expel Ms. Brenda White?!” Kaze held Brenda in his arms and from this scene, Jessica knew the girl was as close as family to him. Ken was stepping on a landmine! His mind went blank. He bent over when Jessica bellowed at him. “Ms. Summer, I didn’t know…” Slap! Jessica slapped him on the face, leaving a flaming hot mark of her palm on his face. “You are fired!” “Huh?” Ken was stunned as he held his face. He arrogantly claimed that he could get Brenda expelled, but now it was he who got fired. He lost his job as an executive of Tuling Education Group, one that paid him almost a million a year. That was not the end. Jessica then said, “I will blacklist your name from the industry. No one in the education field will hire you anymore!” Ken collapsed on the chair. Blacklisted by the entire industry! He was alread
Snow glanced at Camry and Brenda, and she held back from speaking further. “Uncle Camry, why don’t you bring Brenda into the car first?” Kaze put Brenda in Camry’s care. After they went into the car, Kaze frowned and asked, “What happened?” Snow said, “Ms. Quint and the Quint family went over to Hilfinger Corporation to take over the business but they were thrown out by the general manager, Ray Buster. And Kelly Clarkson jumped off the building right in front of them. “At the same time, Henry Hilfinger jumped off the hospital window.” Thump! Jessica, who came out with them, was frightened when she overheard Snow. She immediately knelt before Kaze and begged him. “Kaze, please don’t kill me! I know I’ve made some mistakes but please don’t kill me. I’ll do whatever you tell me to do! I’ll go confess in front of James’ grave! I’ll do whatever I can to make up for his family!” The woman kowtowed to Kaze repeatedly. “Stop it. I am not responsible for their deaths!” Kaze
“Old house?” Kaze looked at Camry and Teresa. Teresa sighed and said, “Brenda is referring to the mansion that James bought when he came back to Lilyrose. That’s when she started to remember things.” Back then, all five of them lived in that house. Winnie also had many pets in the house to keep Brenda entertained. Brenda had fond memories of that place. She still had dreams of her and her parents having fun there. Camry said, “It’s over now. After James passed, the house was taken by the bank and it must have a new owner by now.” Teresa pursed her lips. A hint of reminiscence flashed in her eyes. Back then, the family of five lived a happy life. Kaze took note of the mansion. After he left the White family, he told Snow to check the mansion’s current status. If Brenda wanted her old house back, then there was no need to buy a new one. Snow drove Kaze back to Horizon Mirror Mansion before she left. “Kaze, how dare you come back here! Because of what you said, w
“I have pointed you in a direction. If you still can’t trust your team, you can go to the Viper’s Den.“There’s one thing, though. Don’t rely too heavily on the Viper’s Den, or your company will be left without secrets.” Kaze’s suggestion gave Snow assurance. She considered tapping into the Viper’s Den’s resources. However, Kaze warned her against excessive dependence. “Why did you say that, Chairman Lee? Will the Viper’s Den stab me in the back?” Surely, the Viper’s Den took orders from Kaze. The Viper’s Den would always be an ally so long as Kaze was the branch leader. “I just don’t want you to put too much faith in others. You find loyalty by developing your own team. Those who revere me will never trust you completely.” Kaze analyzed the situation. Snow ate her supper and looked at Kaze in confusion. “You can only count on the people you win over. You can’t trust anyone else, and that includes me.” Kaze would never hurt Snow. However, he hoped that she would fin
“As you said, all is in the past. What’s the point of dwelling on it?” Leah perked up. Such was life, but it took her too long to understand the harsh reality. She guessed things were just not meant to be. “I’ll think about what to get Kaze. Rest well. We’ll visit him in a few days.” Taking the matter seriously, Katie wanted to get gifts ready ahead of time to thank Kaze. “Alright. I’ll see what I can do too. I want to be in touch with the outside world. I don’t care what they have to say. This is not my fault. I won’t blame myself.” Leah wanted her phone back to contact her former friends. Ultimately, she needed to move forward instead of backward. She had to face and fight back the rumors with courage. It was the crucial step to kick trauma in the face. The abduction was kept hush-hush for the most part, but Katie’s frantic search for her daughter at the cocktail party did not go unnoticed. Hearing about the incident, the influential people were keen to find out
“When did Kaze start setting it all up? I get the feeling that everybody played into his hands right from the start, and he had controlled every step of the way.” Leah realized that Kaze was an amazing man. Nothing could go past his eyes. “I don’t know.” Katie feared someone like Kaze. She would not be caught dead near him. Even when grasping the situation, Katie dared not look into Kaze for fear she would be targeted. Katie was careful not to show her face around Kaze. For all she knew, Kaze might get back at her. “But he came to Butterworth alone. We met at the train station, and he helped me out of a bad situation.” Leah felt warm and cozy inside just remembering the events. They did not know each other then. Kaze was kind to help a stranger out. From then on, Kaze could do no wrong in Leah’s eyes. Leah befriended him and found him nice. Her interest in him grew. They also got along well. Her memories of Kaze were sweet. Anyone could hurt her in the world, but
Even though Katie was the CEO of the Northborn Group, many eyed her position. There were too many vying to replace her. Without dedicating herself to her work, Katie risked falling from grace. Katie had been too eager to find success to give her daughter the best life. Leah could not understand the pain Katie had to go through. “I understand it now. I explained the nature of my relationship with Kaze to you, but you just wouldn’t get it.” Leah stubbornly expressed herself in hopes her mother would understand. “I just couldn’t get it through my head that you have grown up. You make an easy target since you just graduated and have not stepped into the real world.” Katie would not always be there for Leah. Hence, Katie did her best to get rid of potential danger. Her overprotectiveness triggered Leah’s defiance. It was Katie’s fault for not realizing it sooner. “I’m not angry with you. I didn’t understand a mother’s good intentions, but I understand now. I will listen to
Leah’s face beamed, but her mother’s words threw her into a daze. In the end, she tried to squeeze a smile to assure her mother. However, Leah could not muster a smile. Those days lingered with her like a recurring bad dream. Whenever she recalled the incident, she felt trapped in that nightmare again. Leah wanted to let those memories fade away, but she just could not do it. She would get startled awake late at night and trace the scars across her skin. During moments like this, she resented Perry. Leah was rather cheerful during the day as if the past was behind her. However, it was simply a way for her to escape the pain. By the way Leah was behaving, Katie instantly regretted the question. She should not have probed. Even if they avoided the elephant in the room, they could pretend like nothing ever happened. Nevertheless, the act of asking brought up unsettling times for Leah. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have asked.” Katie gently held Leah, hoping to cast
When the ambulance door closed shut, Leah wailed once more. The reality of her rescue finally sank in, and she grasped that it was not just a dream. It was a pity that she did not have much time with Kaze. She longed to spend more time with him. “Don’t cry, young lady. You’ll get better soon enough. Don’t worry about the scars on your face. I can administer medicine to help you,” the doctor said while wiping her tears. “Thank you. I’m finally out of the hell hole.” Leah’s worst nightmare would be to be trapped in there forever. Kaze watched as the ambulance disappeared into the night. He then turned to face the villa. “Apprehend everybody in there. Perry should be punished for his crimes.” Kaze had not intended to go after the Duncans, but the family had crossed the line this time. Leah was an adorable and vulnerable woman. She was abused beyond recognition. It never occurred to Kaze that the Duncans could be so cruel. “Perry has passed out in there. Where should
With the secret out in the open, the housekeeper dropped his attitude. He pointed at the basement not too far away. “My employer is in there.” The housekeeper grimaced and kept his head down. Kaze laughed. Unaware of his impending doom, Perry was still living it up. It was absurd. Perry was playing with fire by hurting Leah. “About time you wise up.” Arthur smiled and patted the housekeeper’s face. He opened the door to the basement. Kaze walked to the bar counter and picked up the best bottle of champagne there. He fiddled with the bottle before carrying it to the basement. The other Viper’s Den members followed him. Kaze took a stride down the steps, to the basement. The noisy music was blasting before they reached the entry. Kaze was filled with a mix of emotions. Nevertheless, he said nothing. He opened the door and walked in. The light in the basement was bright, making everything perfectly clear. However, the people inside were not bothered by the
“You know him. It’s Perry Duncan, Leah’s ex-boyfriend.” Snow did not see the point of hiding the truth, so she laid everything out. “Leah must be feeling foul because she was unaware that she was being stalked. By the time she realized what was going on, she was taken into a vehicle. “We spotted the vehicle they departed in from the surveillance footage. They headed to the mountain up north.” Snow had a general idea of the location. “I got Arthur on the job. He’s putting up a team from the Viper’s Den.” Snow was uncertain of Kaze’s stance toward Leah, but now that she was made aware of the situation, the least she could do was help. Katie belonged to the Viper’s Den, so Snow was lending a hand to a friend in business. “Thank you. Please save my daughter.” Katie was nervous. The Viper’s Den was the people she could count on. “Arthur is good, but he’s slow. I’ll do it,” Kaze said. The whole thing was unrelated to him. Kaze was well within his right to stand on the si
Even so, Elsie was out to get Leah. Elsie could pick up on Perry’s delight when she took a swing at Leah. Poor Elsie was just trying to survive by catering to others. People like her learned to pick up social cues and read body language to please customers for money in return. Their income would double if their customers were happy. Leah was the obstacle. If the women could not get rid of her, they would lose their profit. They had no hard feelings for Leah, but they stood on opposing ends. “You should be fawning over Mr. Duncan, not begging me,” Elsie said while grabbing Leah’s hair to pull her up. Leah snatched Elsie’s wrist to try and break free. “Let me go. I never did anything to you.” Leah was no doormat. She did not want to cross these people or get involved with them. She still hoped that by waiting here, her prince would arrive to save her. However, all she got was a cruel beating, and she had enough. “This isn’t my fault. Blame Mr. Duncan for your cir